ROBERT MENENDEZ MAY BE APPOINTED ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE FOR EUROPEAN AND EURASIAN AFFAIRS
PanARMENIAN.Net
27.03.2009 14:44 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly) commends
Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) for his tough questioning of Philip
Gordon, President Barack Obama’s nominee to replace Daniel Fried as
Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs in
the U.S. Department of State, during today’s Senate Foreign Relations
Committee confirmation hearing, the Assembly told PanARMENIAN.Net.
Senator Menendez, an ardent supporter of Armenian-American issues,
when questioning Gordon expressed reservations about his record on
the Armenian Genocide by referencing a November 2007 article wherein
Gordon wrote: "As if tensions with Turkey were not already strained
enough by the Iraq war and the Kurdish issue, moves in the US House
of Representatives to recognise a Turkish ‘genocide’ against Armenians
in 1915 have stoked the sense of crisis."
Menendez added that he has "concern when there is a veto by a foreign
government over domestic policies and policies of the United States
including the Congress of the United States. And [has] a real concern
that those who would be in a position of authority would actually seek
to fashion that… I’m concerned that at the end of the day there
will not be an appropriate balance here if you were to be confirmed
by the Senate. Can you speak to that for me?"
Gordon responded with an acknowledgement that Menendez had "raised
a number of issues that I know are very important to you, to this
committee and to the administration. You quoted comments of mine on
Armenia and the suggestion that these Congressional measures would
provoke a nationalistic backlash in Turkey which analytically I think
is accurate which is what I was writing. I have been at a think tank
for a number of years and that’s what we do, we analyze. And I was
making the analytical statement that such a resolution would provoke
a nationalistic backlash in Turkey.
"You suggested the need for balance and I absolutely agree, and I
absolutely agree that the United States and Congress and citizens,
including in Turkey, need to recognize that a terrible tragedy took
place, that more than a million and a half people were driven from
their homes and massacred. People need to recognize that and honor
the victims of that tragedy. And that sort of balance is necessary,
as I say, not only here but in Turkey. You mentioned the debate within
Turkey and I think that if you’ve looked at my writings you’ve seen
that I’ve personally long encouraged that. The United States government
has encouraged it and if confirmed I would also do so. I think there
has been some progress in that regard, including on this issue, but not
enough and if confirmed I would make it a priority of pushing for it."
Philip H. Gordon, a Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy at the
Brookings Institution in Washington, DC, has written extensively about
the importance of Turkey, as well as expressed doubts about the need
to reaffirm the Armenian Genocide.
"With President Obama, Vice President Biden and Secretary of State
Clinton’s clear and consistent record with respect to U.S. affirmation
of the Armenian Genocide, the Assembly expects that, if confirmed,
Philip Gordon will fully embrace this important human rights policy
position," stated Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny, adding
that "It is long past time for State Department officials to be
fully aware of the historical reality of the Armenian Genocide and
be allowed to speak the truth freely."